Wellbeing

Mental Health Advice for Students

Being a student can be both exciting and overwhelming, and sometimes you’ll encounter really stressful situations which push your mental health to its limits. So, we asked some experts for their advice on how to cope with mental health issues and where you can turn to.

Sport activities are a good way of managing stress, joining a sports team will help push your boundaries and keep you stimulated.

Rest

Try to establish a regular sleep routine, if the body and mind does not get the rest it needs, daily challenges can appear more stressful.

Practice Mindfulness

It is important to stay balanced and make time to switch off from whatever's making you feel stressed and pressurised. In those moments, switch everything off and close your eyes. Concentrate on your breathing and how you feel. Do this for 15 minutes every day. You will be amazed by what this simple short action gives you.

Talk to Someone

If you feel that your worries are spiralling out of control, don't be afraid to ask for help. Statistics from The World Health Organisation have revealed that 75% of mental health problems are established before the age of 24 and that 70% of children experiencing mental health problems have not received help at a sufficiently early age. Yes We Can Youth Clinics are firm believers that early intervention saves lives.

Good mental health is about much more than just the absence of mental health problems, just as good physical health is about more than just not having a physical health problem. Good mental health is the capacity of each and all of us to feel, think, and act in ways that enhance our ability to enjoy life and deal with the challenges we face.

Tutors are there to help and support you, so let them know how they can support you. Use your wider support network as well, which includes your doctor, family, friends, work colleagues as well as your tutors and student support team - both when you are well and if you are struggling. There is often more than can be done than you think.

Remind yourself of your successes with positive self-talk – why you want to do this, your motivations, what you want to succeed. It you struggle to do this for yourself, ask other people to share their positive thoughts about you and your studies with you. Look at positive feedback that you have received and use that to see how you are really doing.

Just because you think it, does not mean it’s true. We all have negative thoughts about ourselves and the world around us. This can be worse when you’re low. Challenge negative thoughts with realistic thoughts. Life can often be experimental, getting it wrong can be as important as getting it right.

Mental health issues invariably lead to academic difficulties. Addressing these can often be an effective way to build underlying confidence, to make you feel that you “can do it’ and you aren’t a failure.

One way of coping is by using Calm Harm, a smartphone app that helps young people manage their urge to self-harm.

The app is based on Dialectic Behaviour Therapy (DBT), an evidence-based therapy which helps manage intense and variable emotions. Its foundations are in Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) but due to the focus on emotions, it is used successfully to help manage self-harm and suicidal impulses.The app was recently nominated for the AXA PPP Health Tech & You Awards.

Calm Harm provides four categories of tasks that help resist or manage the urge to self-harm: Distract, Release, Express and Comfort. Users then have either 5 or 15 minutes to perform a range of different kinds of tasks from sticking fake tattoos to the self-harm areas to distraction techniques like counting the different colours you can see in the room you’re in. There is also a Breathing section to help regulate breaths. The app is completely private and password protected.

Everyone has mental health but we don’t deal or manage it the same way, my clear advice is to find your own way with the support of others. For those of you experiencing mental health difficulties, get help now through your local mental wellbeing service (you can get this from the NHS website or speak to your GP). Also, think about what advice you would give if someone else was in your shoes.

For long term well being, there are many charities who are now promoting the five ways to wellbeing and these are:

Active

Be physically active, do exercise, go for a walk, and take up a sport you enjoy. Be active in your choices and plan ahead when you can.

Socialise with old and new friends, talk to your colleagues and neighbours, spend quality time with family and surprise them – by doing this, you will make yourself and others feel good and this will give you a boost of energy.

Take Notice

Appreciate your environment and those around you, listen to the wind, let the rain fall on your skin, watch the colours of leaves change, mindfulness is a powerful tool!

Give

This can be charity work, or helping others, offer people a smile, and share your knowledge and talents. It’s a brilliant way of developing your own skills

On a final note of advice, I know it can be hard but remember you are not alone, you are loved and cared for, give yourself a chance always, it's never too late…